high altitude

[Jchristenson]

I recently bought a '91 dodge 3/4 ton. The pickup came up to 10,000 Ft. from 6500 ft. , the truck is running somewhat rich. I want to know if a minor valve adjustment will do the trick or if if need new injectors/tune-up etc... stock '91 dodge 250 5-speed 4*4

 

[hdm48]

the ' turbo ' in the aircraft world is known as an altitude compensator. it will make up for the lack of oxigen and air pressure. you might check your pump settings and give it a good tune up and see if that helps. you will notice a drop in boost and overall power but the excess smoke sounds like a tuning issue. when was the last time a fuel cleaner was run through it? when does it smoke? does it start ok?

and just where is it that you live at 10,000 feet?

 

[Timinator]

hdm48 is right. I drove up from Colorado Springs to the top of Mt Evans (14,000+) and had no problems until descent, when I was at idle more often. At idle, no additional air was supplied from the "altitude compensator" so the mixture is very rich. The 'problem' went away as I approached 11,000 ft. I don't know what people who live in Leadville (and similar places) experience, but I am willing to accept a little rich mixture for my infrequent visits to the higher elevations.

 

[Jchristenson]

thanks...

Hey fella's, thanks for the advice. I took it to a diesel shop and had the valvles adjusted and ran some fuel conditioner through it. That completely solved the problem, no more smoke and way more power!! The mech. said the valves were way out of wack and one of them was so loosed it was barely doing its job. Oh, I live in breckenridge, CO at about 9600 ft. thanks again.